Sean Williams

Williams is an Australian speculative fiction writer. His book The Crooked Letter won the 2004 Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Novel.

In a speech at Adelaide University last year (2004), [he] stated: "The sad fact is
that by exposing me to an education in religion, my father probably sowed
the seeds of my own irreligious leanings. Sometime early in 1985, as I
waited for the curtain to go up on my first ever appearance as an actor on
stage, I came to the abrupt realization that I was an atheist. Life just
seemed so much simpler that way, with the Bible and other texts reduced to
the level of good stories rather than internally inconsistent dogma. Thus I
have remained ever since, although my taste for such stories remains."

In an interview with LOCUS magazine, [he's] quoted as saying: "When I was 16 or
17, after years of (literal) soul-searching, it suddenly occurred to me that
I would be happier as an atheist. A huge sense of relief came over me: 'Ah,
I don't have to worry about that anymore! It can just be a good story, and I
can get on with my life.' "